Oracle Create-a-Thon

ericanthonyglover asked: Can't thank you enough for your support on the Barbara's Not Broken page. It means a great deal to me personally that you lent a hand, and I'm so glad to have you as an ally in the fight.

Best,
Eric

You’re very welcome! Thank you for your part, as well. =)

Facebook page highlights strength of Barbara Gordon as Oracle

dcwomenkickingass:

One of the most controversial changes to the DCnU is Barbara Gordon returning to the role of Batgirl. I’ve had my say on why it concerns me and there is this now famous heart-felt essay by Jill Pantozzi.

According to DC documents associated with the launch, Barbara will recover and return to being Batgirl in September. Yesterday I posted Dan Didio and Jim Lee’s explanation for why they decided to return her to the role of Batgirl.

There have been a number of efforts to communicate to DC the troubling issues of returning Barbara back to the tights. There have been letter writing campaigns, a Tumblr devoted to Oracle and now a Facebook page called “Barbara is not broken”, if you are unhappy with DC’s decision I suggest you check it out. The person behind this effort also did an essay for Bleeding Cool. While I don’t agree with all his points, the essay touches upon many of the things that trouble me about this decision.

And not just because it is mine, a lovely sketch of Oracle by Adam Hughes.

ericanthonyglover asked: Hey,

Your tumblr is amazing, and I'd like to thank you for turning a terrible situation into something uplifting for people who were disappointed in DC Comics' Batgirl decision.

I'm writing to let you know that I'm spearheading a campaign called "Barbara's Not Broken," with the purpose of holding DC accountable for its mistake regarding disability awareness in pop culture. The Facebook cause page just went up, and it's imperative that momentum builds on this quickly in order to make a real impact. If you wouldn't mind taking a look at the page (a quick Google search for "Barbara's Not Broken" should do it), the campaign could seriously benefit from your support and the support of your followers. The page has a link to a petition, an in-depth op-ed on the matter, and easy suggestions for how to constructively express disapproval to DC for anyone interested. I would be honored to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,
Eric

Sounds great!

Here’s the link for those of you on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Barbaras-Not-Broken/216306118404228?sk=info

A picture of Barbara as Oracle from Guillem March’s drawing in issue Oracle: The Cure #2, where she finds out that the Calculator has been killing internet hackers from across the globe to get his hands on the Equation. I reworked this amazing piece from Guillem on Illustrator using my tablet, since I needed to sharpen my skills while on my summer break. I recently got into reading comics and the first character I felt a connection with was Barbara as batgirl and as oracle because she is such a magnificent person.

A picture of Barbara as Oracle from Guillem March’s drawing in issue Oracle: The Cure #2, where she finds out that the Calculator has been killing internet hackers from across the globe to get his hands on the Equation.

I reworked this amazing piece from Guillem on Illustrator using my tablet, since I needed to sharpen my skills while on my summer break. I recently got into reading comics and the first character I felt a connection with was Barbara as batgirl and as oracle because she is such a magnificent person.

Anonymous asked: Thank you :D So much, this is awesome. I've got mental disabilities myself, and although it sucks to se a character who means so much to me and, hell, to a lot of people, regress to a role she's long since outgrown, at least this blog came out of it :)

You’re welcome! I’m glad that to see so many fans bonding together to celebrate and support Oracle.  <3

When the cover of the first issue of the new Batgirl series was unveiled, I was, like many, disappointed with the implication that Barbara Gordon would be resuming the role at the expense of her own identity as Oracle, as well as the promising career of Steph Brown.  I found myself looking for a way that DC could put Barbara Gordon back at the center of the Batgirl legend, and revive the classic look, while not erasing the incredible accomplishments and the formidable legacy the character has developed since 1988 and The Killing Joke.  That&#8217;s where the idea for this picture started.  With the recent (but not surprising) confirmation that both Steph and her predecessor Cassandra Cain are being benched, I thought I&#8217;d go ahead and submit it here.    

When the cover of the first issue of the new Batgirl series was unveiled, I was, like many, disappointed with the implication that Barbara Gordon would be resuming the role at the expense of her own identity as Oracle, as well as the promising career of Steph Brown.  I found myself looking for a way that DC could put Barbara Gordon back at the center of the Batgirl legend, and revive the classic look, while not erasing the incredible accomplishments and the formidable legacy the character has developed since 1988 and The Killing Joke.  That’s where the idea for this picture started.  With the recent (but not surprising) confirmation that both Steph and her predecessor Cassandra Cain are being benched, I thought I’d go ahead and submit it here.
    

Oracle Batgirl DC Barbara Gordon

http://mannycartoon.deviantart.com/art/Oracale-213159083

I love what you’re doing here. I think Barbara is much better served as Oracle.

This is my humble tribute to Barbara Gordon’s coolest role. There are tons of Batgirls and ever more costumed kids that support Batman but only one of them can do it from air conditioned comfort and be more helpful than most.

radicaljojo: Mm…I had a flight delayed by an entire day, so I decided to do something productive with that time. This is Barbara Gordon; you probably already know about her. She was once Batgirl, but since 1986 she’s been the amazing computer specialist, and the invaluable eyes and ears (with a bright brain attached) of Gotham City’s vigilantes. She’s in a wheelchair, by the way, and that’s a big part of her motivation for being a crimefighter. She’s pretty great. But DC’s retooling their universe come September, and she’s gonna go back to being Batgirl. What’s the motivation? I dunno; probably nostalgia for comics pre-1986. Doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that…Well, think about this: how many other superheroes can you name who use a wheelchair? It’s not a lot, is it? That’s a perspective on the world that’s being taken away from the DC universe’s stories. They’re limiting the kind of stories they can tell; I can’t help but think that that’s rather the opposite ideal for the world of comics. And I sure have been reading a lot of opinion pieces from people who themselves are comic-reading wheelchair-users, and how very hurt they are that a hero that they have such personal extra-special feelings for isn’t gonna be a part of their (very very very) underrepresented group. That’s pretty heartbreaking. And for those of us who don’t use wheelchairs, it’s also a sad thing; after all, the stories we tell reveal the things that are important to us, and teach us what and who are important. They teach us how to have empathy. I think the world needs more empathy. Just my two cents. So, um…Just wanted to show my support for the notion that Barbara should remain as Oracle. For the good of storytelling, and, really, for the good of the world, man, ya know? The original painting is up for sale. I’ve also made a few art prints. 100% of proceeds going to Wheels for Humanity. Send me a note if you’re interested. character by Gardner Fox &amp; Carmine Infantino, DC Comics watercolor &amp; ink; J. E. Seames, 2011

radicaljojo:

Mm…I had a flight delayed by an entire day, so I decided to do something productive with that time.

This is Barbara Gordon; you probably already know about her. She was once Batgirl, but since 1986 she’s been the amazing computer specialist, and the invaluable eyes and ears (with a bright brain attached) of Gotham City’s vigilantes. She’s in a wheelchair, by the way, and that’s a big part of her motivation for being a crimefighter. She’s pretty great.

But DC’s retooling their universe come September, and she’s gonna go back to being Batgirl. What’s the motivation? I dunno; probably nostalgia for comics pre-1986. Doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that…Well, think about this: how many other superheroes can you name who use a wheelchair? It’s not a lot, is it? That’s a perspective on the world that’s being taken away from the DC universe’s stories. They’re limiting the kind of stories they can tell; I can’t help but think that that’s rather the opposite ideal for the world of comics. And I sure have been reading a lot of opinion pieces from people who themselves are comic-reading wheelchair-users, and how very hurt they are that a hero that they have such personal extra-special feelings for isn’t gonna be a part of their (very very very) underrepresented group. That’s pretty heartbreaking. And for those of us who don’t use wheelchairs, it’s also a sad thing; after all, the stories we tell reveal the things that are important to us, and teach us what and who are important. They teach us how to have empathy. I think the world needs more empathy. Just my two cents.

So, um…Just wanted to show my support for the notion that Barbara should remain as Oracle. For the good of storytelling, and, really, for the good of the world, man, ya know?

The original painting is up for sale. I’ve also made a few art prints. 100% of proceeds going to Wheels for Humanity. Send me a note if you’re interested.

character by Gardner Fox & Carmine Infantino, DC Comics
watercolor & ink; J. E. Seames, 2011

(Source: jojoseames)

[Image: a three panels watercolour piece of Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown and Barbara Gordon. Cass and Steph are standing on rooftops while Babs is in her computer room. Cass is wearing black and you can see her face, Stephanie is in her spoiler costume but with the hood down. In all of the panels you can see a sinister red moon.] I still have to create a piece specifically for this blog but this older piece of mine might do for the moment.

[Image: a three panels watercolour piece of Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown and Barbara Gordon. Cass and Steph are standing on rooftops while Babs is in her computer room. Cass is wearing black and you can see her face, Stephanie is in her spoiler costume but with the hood down. In all of the panels you can see a sinister red moon.]

I still have to create a piece specifically for this blog but this older piece of mine might do for the moment.